About This Painting:

One of the oldest and most famous cafes in Lisbon, Portugal, Brasileira was a travel destination in and of itself.  During a stay in Lisbon, I wanted to head for this cafe first.  I could feel anticipation building high as I looked for this place.

The minute I walked in, I was dazzled.  The Old World atmosphere of this historic cafe made me want to paint it right away.  The interiors were filled with charm of Art Deco style - decorative chandeliers, mirrors on the walls, a long dark oak bar, checkered floor tiles, etc.

I was intrigued to see how lights coming from the ceiling and the back of the cafe bounce off the floor and the mirrors to illuminate other furnishings and people inside.

I would have been quite a nuisance if I had tried to paint right there so I took several photos.  Most of them turned out a bit too blurry but the mood of the place was captured.  The first sight of this scene made such an unforgettable impression on my mind.  So my memory also aided me a great deal when I was painting it.

The painting process of Lisbon Cafe VI was largely emotion-driven rather than based on careful planning.  Working mostly in wet-in-wet, I let the paints run into each other and had fun letting shapes emerge.










This painting recently received the second place award in the 34th Annual Western Federation of Watercolor Societies Exhibition.  It is curretnly on display in the exhibition which is hosted by the San Diego Watercolor Society this year.  The show runs from May 1 through May 31.  Juror was Robert Burridge (Click here to see award-winning paintings).


Media: original watercolor
Image Size: 21 x 14  in. (mat size 28 x 22 in.)
Price: Sold



Lisbon Cafe V - I did this preliminary painting before I made Lisbon Cafe VI.





Media: original watercolor
Image Size: 18.5 x 6.5 in. (mat size 24 x 11.5 in)
Price: Sold


Visit my gallery page at Dailypainters.com.